FAQ: Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a Cloud and a Cloudscape?

Clouds can be anything of relevance to learning and teaching, for example: a website; a description of a learning activity; a case study; a resource or tool; or a summary of a presentation. You can also use clouds to pose questions to the Cloudworks community.

A Cloudscape is simply a collection, or bundle, of related Clouds. You might set up a Cloudscape to group Clouds around a topic (i.e. assessment), an event (i.e. a conference or course), or set up a personal Cloudscape to group Clouds you are particularly interested in. One Cloud can belong to any number of Cloudscapes. For more guidance, see How to set up a Cloud or Cloudscape.

Clouds and Cloudscapes have different functionality.

Cloud: for discussion, sharing and debate

Have a discussion

Embed a video or image

Add a link

Add an academic reference

Add extra content

Add tags

Cloudscape: for collecting, linking and following Clouds

Follow the Cloudscape

RSS feed

View Cloudstream

Add tags

Add Clouds

Upload a picture

Add a Twitter feed

I didn't receive my registration email - what should I do?

When you first register you will be send a confirmation e-mail automatically. This will usually happen immediately but in unusual cases may take longer. Sometimes the automatic e-mail will end up in a spam folder so please also check there. If you still haven't received an email after about an hour please contact the team cloudworks@open.ac.uk

I've lost my password - what should I do?

If you have lost or forgotten your password, the site can quickly send you a new one.

You will receive an email within a few minutes (if you don’t, check your spam folder)

Click on the link

You will be sent another e-mail with your new 5 character password

This new password should be changed as soon as possible. Log in and change your password by going to your profile page

How do I upload files?

Cloudworks is not a repository - this means that it is not possible to upload files onto the site. We have done this for a number of reasons, not least because we recognise the issues associated with uploading documents to multiple places (such as editing and managing permissions).

How do I add a Twitter stream?

You can add a Twitter stream to a Cloudscape but not to a Cloud. You can not add a Twitter stream to someone else's Cloudscape unless you have been given admin permission for the cloudscape by the Cloudscape owner. Please note that Tweets are only available from Twitter for 3 months so if you want to keep an enduring record of the discussion you will need to set up a Tweet archive (using a service like Twapper Keeper)

To add a Twitter stream to a Cloudscape go to the Cloudscape and click on edit. Add your (#) hash tag in the Twitter tag box. For more information about setting up a #tag and Twitter archive please see 'Using Twitter in Cloudworks'

Can I restrict access/ add editors to my Clouds and Cloudscapes?

The Cloudworks site is open, which means anyone can search for and view everything on the site. However, it is possible to manage permissions to Cloudscapes you have set up. By clicking on 'permissions'on the right hand side of your Cloudscape page you can:

Close your Cloudscape so that other people can't add Clouds to it

Add one or more users as a 'poster' - this means they can add Clouds to an otherwise closed Cloudscape

Give one or more users full admin rights of your Cloudscape

Why are my items being moderated?

It is really important to us that Cloudworks stays free of spam and we use an external spam filter on the site called Mollom which is 99.77% effective. From time to time, the filter will mistakenly identify a message as spam and put it forward for moderation. During working hours will quickly pick these up, check and clear them - although this might take longer at the weekends or in the evenings (GMT). This is likely to be a one-off occurrence.

If you are finding that your posts are constantly being sent for moderation then please contact us cloudworks@open.ac.uk .

Can I change my password or picture?

You can change all of these on your profile page:

Log-in and click on the red tab with your name on.

From the drop-down box choose 'Your Profile'

Then either 'edit' to change your name and other details, 'edit picture' to change or add your picture, or 'change password' to change your password.

Can I have two accounts with the same password?

An email address can only be linked to one profile. If you want to set up another profile, for a group or course for example, you will have to choose a different address.

How can I change my email notifications?

You can switch off and on the following email preferences:

Notify me when somebody follows me

Notify me when someone comments on one of my Clouds

Notify me when someone comments of a Cloud on which I have already commented

Receive occasional e-mails from the Cloudworks team

Display my e-mail address on my profile

You can do this by logging-in, clicking on the red tab with your name on, and choosing 'E-mail Preferences'.